Game apparatus



Feb. 2s, 1933. A) w, MCCLEAN 1,899,706

l GAME APPARATUS I Filed May 22. 1931 5 sheets-sheet 1 l l l ago Feb.28, 1933.

A. W. McCLEAN GAME APPARATUS Filed May 22. 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 /7/ean'en WPA/676@ @y I l Wd fe'f www Feb. 28, 1933. A. w. MCCLEAN GAMEvAPPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 22. 1931- l l X l l 1 l I IlPatented Feb. 28, 1933 UNITED STATES ALEXANDER W. MCCLEAN, or WEBSTERGnovns, Missormr GAME APPARATUS Application led May 22,

The invention relates to improvements in game apparatus, and consistsinthe novel construction hereinafter disclosed.

An object of the invention is to provide a game apparatus wherein aplurality of spheres or bails, which constitute the counters of thegame, are propelled around an oval or circular track by air impulsesdelivered across the surface of the track, the air impulses affectingthe several counters irregularly, thereby propelling the counters atundetermined and different velocities.

Another object of the invention is to equip an apparatus of the classdescribed with means for imparting to the counters a starting impulsesimultaneously, together with manual and electrical means for operatingsaid starting apparatus.

Another object is to equip an apparatus o the class described with meansfor assembling the counters` in sequence sothat the Vcounters will cometo a point of rest in sequence to thereby determine the sequence offinish of the counters, to enable the game to be played upon theprinciple of a race.

Other detailed features of the construction will be apparent from theLfollowing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, in which` Fig. 1 is a top plan view with a portion of theapparatus broken away.

Fig'. 2 is a side elevation.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view illustrating Y the counters dispersed.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross-section.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged plan view with portions broken away to moreclearly illustrate the mechanism.

Fig. 7 is a detail of one of the air passages.

Fig. 8 is an electrical diagram illustrating the wiring for theelectrical operating mechanism. y

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, theapparatus is shown as incorporated in a frame 1 in the form of a tablehaving legs 2. Vithin the frame there is a continuous conduit A formed Ufrom spaced vertical walls 3 and 4 supportthe line 4 4 1931. Serial No.539,162.

ed by a bottom wall 5 of the lframe. This conduit is so constructed asto provide an oblong passage of substantial cubic capacity. At one sideof the frame there is provided an Vinlet conduit B formed from a curvedwall'6 55 that extends across `VVthe conduit Vabove described. ThisVinlet conduit communicates l with an opening Yin the bottom wall 5 ofthe frame, :said opening being covered by f a screen 8, therebyprovidingV anair intake.

W'ithin this air inlet conduit isf. a fan 9 driven by a motor 10, theblades of the fan being set to cause a suction in the inlet conduit andto 4drive the air column forward .of the fan into the'air conduit firstdescribed. 65 The wall 6 terminates at its inner extremit y slightlybelow the top of they air conduit to provide a passageway 11 for the aircolumn that traverses the main conduit A of the apparatus. The conduit Ahas a top plate 12 70 in which there is a plurality of irregularlyspaced openings 13 which project" through the wall of the plate at aninclination substantially uniform in direction, whereby air jets arepermitted egress from the conduit A in the direction indicated by theseveral arrows applied to the openings 13.V These openings may varyincross-section so that the amount or volume o-f the air emitted'fromthe several openingsl varies at different points inthe surface of theplate. vThe plate 12 constitutes the runway for the'spheresor balls C,which constitute the counters. At yeach sideVV of the plate 12y andabove the surface thereof are rails, the inner rail being indicated by14 and the outer rail by 15.

Through the vertical side walls ofthe rails 14? and 15 are a pluralityof passages 16 andV 17 respectively, said passages communicating withthe conduit A and having a direction of angularity thatvaries to 'somedegree, butV having an inclination in the general direction of theinclination ofthe passages 13. The angularity of the Vpassagesl'and 17is conveniently illustratedby the arrows, particularly inV Fig. 1 of thedrawings@ The plate 12and the rails 14 and `15 form a'substantiallyVoval channel which constitutes thev raceway for the countersw The frameofthe machine may be conveniently finished by aVv top frame member 13that encompasses the raceway and linishes the generally oblong contourof the apparatus table.

The central section D within the oval con" duit A provides a convenienthousing for a part of the electrical apparatus for operating ries ofgrooves 2l extending at right angles thereto. The groove 2O provides apoint of rest for the transverse series of counters C, so that they maybe brought into alinement, and the grooves 2l provide lanes for7determining the initial direction of the counters at the start et theirmovement. The groove 2O also'provides a means for accumulating thecounters at the end of the travel thereof, said counters being assembledin the groove 2O in sequence after they have completed the course.v s

rlhe counters arealined inthe groove 20, as shown particularly in Fig. lof the drawings, and are given'the initial impulse by mechanismhereinafter to be described. After they have been impelled into theraceway, the counters are advanced by' means of the several jets of airthat strike themat undetermined angles from the passages 13, 16 and 17.The counters taire tortuous path through the raceway at varyingvelocities, so

. that they traverse the raceway at various soeeds. It should beunderstood that the counters are varicolored so that those playing thegame may select a particular counter at the start of the race, and thecounter that fin ishes first, iii' selected by the player, is thewinner, the other counters finishing in sequence determining the points.attained by the players who have selected the several vcounters beforethe :initial impulse was imparted thereto'.

. In order that the sequence of finish of the race may be accuratelydetermined, the raceway is provided at the end of the course with aselecting mechanism through which the counters are admitted in sequence.This construction for selecting the counters in sequence includesinwardly inclined rails 22 and 23 which form a throat 24 to a passageway formed from a U-shaped rail 25 formed as an extension of the rail 23and a barrier 26. The throat 24 is of a cross dimension to admit thecounters inv sequence. When a counter passes through the throat 24, itis given a lateral impulse by an opening in a rail 27 that is formed asan extension of the rail 22. The direction of the jet is indicated bythe arrow in Fig. l projecting from the member 27. Whenthe counterreaches the 'cross member `oi: the U-rail 25, it is given a forwardimpulse by an opening in the left arm Aof the lJ-rail, as indicated inFig.` l by the arrow projecting from said member. The cross member ofthe U-rail vhas a passage therein in alinement with the groove 2O sothat, as the counter reaches the forward turn, it is directed into thegroove 2O.V

As the counters can only pass through the throat 24 oneat a time, theywill be accumulated in the groove 20 in sequence from the outside of theraceway inwardly. In this way, after all of the counters have inishedthe course, they will be raclredin the groove 20 in the order in whichthey finished the course.

The major portion of the raceway is open at the top but, in order toinsure the movement yor the counters through the throat 24, a glasspanel 28 is mounted over the raceway in the rear of the rails 22 and 23.rlhis closure of the raceway tends to confine the air currents and toinsure the movement of the counters through the selecting mechanism.

.In order to preventthe choking of the counters in the throat 24, anagitating plate 29 is mounted in the plate 12 adjacent to the inlet ofthe throat 24. The construction of this plate is best indicated in Figs.3 and 4 oit the drawings, from which it will be noted that the plate hasinclined walls and is mounted on an angular arm 30 pivoted at 3l inbrackets 32. A curved lever 33 is attached to` the arm 30 and carries aweight 34 at its forward end. The rear end of the lever 33 is operatedby a revolving rod 35 provided with a loop projection 36 that acts'as atappet for oscillating the lever 33 and thereby, through the connectionsdescribed, vibrating the plate 29.

The rod 35 is supported for rotation transversely of the conduit A andthe means for rotating the rod comprises a fan 37 set in an opening 38through the side wall of the conduit A. The air currents in the conduitrevolve the fan and cause the rod 35 to rotate which, in turn,oscillates `the lever 33, developing a vibrating movement of the plate29, preventing the counters from choking at the inlet of the throat24,

In order 'to direct the movement ci the counters into the throat 24,afseries of projections in the -form of screws 39 are arranged in theJrace ot the plate l2 and in the plate 29. These projections, properlyplaced, guide the counters-in sequence to the throat. A'glass panel 40is alsor placed over the J- shaped channel so that the linal vimpulsesto the counters will be properly directed to cause the. passage of' thecounters rapidly through the channel and into the groove 20.

The starting mechanism for imparting the initial impulse to the counterscomprises a plate 4l. extending vertically from the 'lace ofthe trackand'transversely thereof a point rearward of but approximate to thegroove 2O.` This plate 4l isY pivoted for swinging movements in brackets42 at the side of the raceway. A vertically extending lever 48 ispivoted belowthe top plate 12 in brackets 44 connected to the under faceof said plate .12. The upper arm'of the lever 43 extends through a slotin the plate 12 and is provided with an angular extremity 45 that restsagainst the back face of the plate 41 below the pivot support therefor.VThe lower end of the lever 43 extends downwardly and is in contact witha vibratory plate 46l of an electric vibrator 47.

The vibrator 47 is of the usual construction. Vhen the coils of thevibrator are energized, the vibratory motion is imparted to the plate46. The vibration of the plate 46 imparts a rapid swinging motion to thelever 48 whichincreases in intensity until the plate 41 swings outwardlyat its lower end by the permissive action of the upper end of the leveragainst the-rear face of the plate. The plate 41, being alined in therear of the counters when the counters are racked in the groove 20,moves the counters forwardly simultaneously through the lanes 21 withsuiicient impulse to advance the counters in the raceway to bring 'themwithin the Zone of air currents from the several openings from the airconduit A and thereby advance the counters irregularly around theraceway. i The wiring diagram for the fan motor and the vibrator isshown in Fig. 8 of the drawing, from which it will be understood thatthe motor 10 which drives the fan is connected in parallel with the mainleads 48 and is controlled by a switch 49. The vibrator 47 l is actuatedfrom a transformer 50,7the primary of which is in parallel with the mainleads 48 and is controlled by a switch 51. The vibrator is actuated bythe secondary of the transformer with which it is electricallyconnected, as clearly shown in the diagram.

In addition to the electrical means for actuatin g the plate 41, amechanical means for this purpose is provided. The mechanical meansconsists of a lever 52 which is pivotedbelow the plate 12 in a bracket53. The lever 52 extends upwardly through a slot in the plate 12 and isprovided with a lingerpiece 54. rlChe lower end of the lever 52 is incontact with a rod 55 that extends into a bracket 56. The rod 55contacts with one end of a transverse lever 57, which lever 57 ispivoted intermediate of its length and has anangular extremity 58 thatcontacts with the lever 43. An expansion' spring 59 is mounted in thekbracket 56 andbears against the end of the lever 57, forcing the levernormally against the end of the rod 55. When the lever 52 is actuated,the rod 55 is moved to compress the spring 59 and, when the lever 52 isreleased, the spring will cause a Vvibratory movement of the lever 57,imparting a percussive action to the lever 43 which, in

turn, actuates the plate 41.

, A bell 60 is mounted below the plate 12,

chanically, a swinging motion will be im- .v parted to the lever 61andthereby opera-te the bell mechanism. r

I am aware that the invention maybe modified in numerous particularswithout departing from the spirit vand scope thereof, but what I claimand desireto secure by Letters Patent is z-f p Y 1. A game apparatus`comprising a raceway having a bottom wall, a plurality of air jets fordelivering currents-of air across said raceway, and a plurality ofirregularly spaced air jets for deliveringcurrents of air through saidbottom wall, said` jets being adapted to propel counters around saidraceway. v

2. A game apparatus comprising a raceway, a plurality of` air jets vfordelivering currents of air across said raceway and adapted to propelspherical countersaround saidv raceway, and mechanical means'forimparting an initial impulse tothe counters simultaneously and forbringing themv within the zone of the air currents. l y f 3. A gameapparatus comprising a raceway, a plurality of air jetsfor deliveringcurrents ofair acro'sssaid raceway and adapted to propel sphericalcounters around saidraceway, mechanical means for imparting an initialimpulse to the counters simultaneously and'for bringing them within ytheZone of the air currents, and means for bringing, the counters to apoint of rest in sequence after they have traversed the raceway.

4. A game apparatus comprising anair conduit, a channel forming araceway located above said conduit, there being a yplurality ofpassageways between the conduit and said channel for delivering aircurrents Vfrom the conduit to the surface of the raceway, means forgenerating a current of air in said conduit to form air currents throughsaid passageways and across the surface of said raceway, a groovetransversely of the raceway constituting a rack for `spherical counters,

means .for simultaneously impelling the counters into the air currents,and electrical actuating means for said impelling means.

5. A game apparatus comprising an air conduit, a channel forming araceway located above said conduit, there being a plurality ofpassageways between the conduit and said channel for delivering aircurrents from the conduit to the surface of the raceway, vmeans forgenerating a current of air in saidconduit to form Aair currentsthroughsaid passageways and across the surface of said raceway, a groove ftransversely ofV the raceway constituting a rack for spherical counters,means for simultaneouslyv impelling the counters intothe air currents,`and mechanical actuating means for said impelling means. Y

6. A game apparatus comprising a continuous open channel formed from abottom plate and side walls, a plurality of air con- .duits Vin thebottom wall and side walls having an angular adjustment to deliver aircir-- cumferentially in one direction across `said channel, a transversegroove constituting a rack for a plurality of spheres, a mechanicaldevice adapted to impart an initial movement to said spheres arrangedtransversely of the channel, a selecting device comprising a restrictedpassage for permitting sequential entrance of the spheres into saidrack., and a vibrating plate at the throat of said` passage andprojecting through the bottom wall roi the channel for preventing thespheres from choking in said restricted passage.

8. A gaine apparatus comprising a ycontinuous open channel Jformed froma bottom plate and side walls, a plurality of air conduits in the bottomwall and side walls having an angular adjustment to deliver aircircumferentially in one direction across said channel, a transversegroove constituting a rack for a plurality of spheres, a mechanicaldevice adapted to impart an initial movement to ysaid spheres arrangedtransversely of the channel, a selecting device comprising are-strictedpassage for permittingsequential entrance of the spheres into said rack,and means adjacent to the throat of said restricted passage for guidingthe spheres in sequence into said restricted passage.

9. A gaine apparatus comprising acontinuous air conduit, a blower insaid conduitfor -developing a draft of air therein, a continuous channelconstituting a raceway comprising a bottom. plate and side walls, saidbottom plate and side walls having vpassages communicating with said airconduit and adapted to direct currents of air across said raceway, a

'rack formed in said bottom plate for supportin@ a plurality of spherestransversely thereof, a swinging plate arranged vparallel with saidrack, an electric vibrator, connections between said vibrator and saidplate whereby, when said vibrator is energized, said plate will berocked to move the spheres out of the rack and into .the raceway, andmeans for accumulating the spheres in sequence in said rack after theyhave been propelled around said raceway.

10. A game apparatus comprising a raceway having a bottom wall providedwith a

